Iraj

Character from the Iranian nation history From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Iraj (Persian: ایرج, romanized: ʾīraj) is according to the Iranian national history, the youngest son of Fereydun and the mythical ancestor of the Iranians.^[1] He already appears in the Avesta as Airiia, and in later Zoroastrian tradition as Ērič. The ultimate rendering of his story is told in the Shahnameh.^[2]

AffiliationPishdadian dynasty

NationalityIranian

Quick facts In-universe information, Affiliation ...

Iraj
Qajar-era illustration of Iraj, Salm and Tur
In-universe information
Affiliation	Pishdadian dynasty
Nationality	Iranian

Name

Iraj first appears in the Avesta under the name Airiia 𐬀𐬌𐬭𐬌𐬌𐬀. He may be mentioned in the Persepolis Elamite tablets as Harriyazza, which would be the Elamite rendering of a hypothetical Old Persian *Airya-ča.^[3] In the Middle Persian literature, he appears as Ērič and in Modern Persian as Iraj (Persian: ایرج, romanized: ʾīraj. The name is universially agreed to the mean Iranian pointing to his role as the legendary progenitor of the Iranians.^[4]

In the Avesta

The oldest mention of Iraj is found in the Avesta, where he appears as Airiia. In the Fravardin Yasht (Yt. 13.131), he is mentioned as the father of Manuchehr, although in later tradition he is his grandfather.^[5] Elements of his story were reportedly also provided in the Chihrdad nask. This book was one of the volumes of the Sasanian Avesta, but is no longer extant.^[6] Its content is, however, summarized in the later Denkard, according to which, it contained the division of the world between him and his bothers.^[7]

In later tradition

Iraj is also mentioned in a number of Middle Persian sources, where he appears as Ērič.^[8] Next to the Denkard, which retells parts of the Chihrdad nask, he is also mentioned in the Bundahishn, which tells how his death at the hands of his brothers was eventually avenged by Manuchehr.^[9] In the Ayādgār ī Jāmāspīg, we also find the story of the division of the world, but with Salm now becoming the ruler of Rome.^[10]

In the Shahnameh

The definite account of Iraj is provided in the Shahnameh by Ferdowsi. The story therein contains all the elements known from the earlier Avestan and Middle Persian sources, like the division of the world between him and his brothers, his later murder and the eventual revenge by his grandson Manuchehr. Being the national epic of Greater Iran, the story in the Shahnameh has been praised for its "eloquence and picturesque language".^[11] A modernized prose version of the story as given in the Shahnameh is presented by Yarshater.^[12]

Gallery

A page from Shahnameh, in Walters Art Museum, showing the murder of Iraj by his brothers
Murder scene of Iraj by his brothers, Salm and Tur, from National Library of Russia, St Petersburg – The calligraphy in the margins are Nastaliq
From a Folio in Abu'l Qasim Firdausi's, Shahnameh

Family Tree

Arnavaz

Fereydun

Shahrnaz

Fereydun's Brother

Iraj

Salm

Tur

Pashang

Iraj's daughter

Manuchehr

References

Citations

[1]
Shahbazi 2004, "IRAJ, the youngest son of Ferēdun and the eponymous hero of the Iranians in their traditional history".
[2]
Shahbazi 2004, "The most developed form of the story of Iraj is given by Ferdowsi".
[3]
Cereti 2002, p. 36.
[4]
Yarshater 2004, "Iraj, the eponymous ancestor of the Iranians".
[5]
Shahbazi 2004, "The oldest trace of the story of Iraj and his brothers is found in the Fravardin Yašt, where the fravaši of Manu-ščiθra (> Manučehr) son of Airiya (> Iraj) is venerated".
[6]
MacKenzie 1991.
[7]
Shahbazi 2004, "The Sasanian Avesta had the story in the Čihrdād Nask (q.v.), of which a summary is preserved in Dēnkard".
[8]
Yarshater 1983, p. 372.
[9]
Shahbazi 2004, "The Bundahišn [...] refers to the story of the three brothers and to Manuščihr’s avenging of the murder of Ērič by Sarm and Turč".
[10]
Shahbazi 2004, "According to the Ayādgār ī Jāmāspīg[,] Salm, who desired great riches, received the [wealthy] land of Rum".
[11]
Shahbazi 2004, "The most developed form of the story of Iraj is given by Ferdowsi (Šāh-nāma, ed. Khaleghi, I, pp. 92-157) in an episode remarkable for its eloquence and picturesque language".
[12]
Yarshater 1957, pp. 47-60, 62-79.

Bibliography

Cereti, Carlo (2002). "On Zoroaster's Genealogy". Iran: Questions et connaissances. I. La période ancienne. Cahiers de Studia Iranica Series. Vol. 25. Paris: Association pour l'avancement des études iraniennes. ISBN 978-2910640101.
MacKenzie, David N. (1991). "ČIHRDĀD NASK". Encyclopædia Iranica. Vol. V. New York: Routledge and Kegan Paul. p. 561.
Shahbazi, Alireza Shapour (2004). "IRAJ". Encyclopædia Iranica. Vol. XIII. New York: Routledge and Kegan Paul. pp. 200–202.
Yarshater, Ehsan (1957). Legends of the Epic of Kings (Dastanha-ye Shahnama). Tehran: Iran-American Joint Fund Publications.
Yarshater, Ehsan (1983). "Iranian National History". In Yarshater, Ehsan (ed.). The Cambridge History of Iran. Vol. 3(1). Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-24693-4.
Yarshater, Ehsan (2004). "IRAN iii. TRADITIONAL HISTORY". Encyclopædia Iranica. Vol. XIII. New York: Routledge and Kegan Paul. pp. 299–307.